Morning journal and courier., 1887-03-29

| set forth.
| The resolutions. were unanimously adopted
1t was voted that in the make up of the
| committee the various trade committees
| should nominate representatives.
Anxiety Felt In New Brunswick.
ST. JOHN, N. B., March 2S.-Considerable
| anxiety is felt in the northern counties on
the line of the New Brunswick railway in
regard to the effect of the United States in
tsr-State commerce law exports. Its
operation will have the effect of greatly in
creasing the cost of freights practically in
| bark, potatoes and hay, the trade in which
from one county alone reaches many thou
sands annually. The result it is thought
will be to lessen the export.
CRIMINAL LAW I'm IRELAND.
Balfour Explains The Provisions of
His Coercion Measure.
LONDON, March 2S.-In the House of Com
mons tonight Mr.. w. H. Smith gave intima-
ton of the decision of the government to
ask the House to advance the Irish criminal
law amendment bill to it's second reading be-
fore the proposal to adjourn the deliberations
of the House during the Easter holidays
should be made. The government, he said,
staked its existence upon the success of this
measure and was determined to lose no time
in pushing it through to final passage.
Mr.. A. J. Balfour moved the first reading
of the bill and referring to Mr.. Parnells
amendment that the House required further
information to the condition of Ireland
before the introduction of the bill said he
thought the Parnellites were sufficiently in
formed already and would recognize the an
archy existing in Ireland as an artisan recog-
nizes work done by his own hand Speaking
of the amount of crime to be considered Mr.
Balfour said it was SHOWN in fact and was a
matter of record that the police were now
protecting in Munster 498 persons, in Con-
naught 175 and in Leinster 251, and read
documents showing that the persons now
charged with criminal acts in Ireland bore no
relation whatever to the amount of crime,
boycotting and intimidation existing there.
These facts, Mr.. Balfour declared, were prov
en- by the testimony of impartial aud nom
partisan witnesses and further evidence was
shown in this fact that juries had refused in
the clearest cases to convict criminals
who because of the perjured action of the
jurors were permitted to go free and repeat
their crimes. Mr.. Bslfour read long list of
cases in support of his argument in which
juries had wholly disregarded the evidence
against criminals and said it was not wonder
full that this thing existed when the press of
ireland as well as portion of that of En-
gland held up to- public scorn jurymen who
obeyed the laws and decided cases by the
evidence presented. This kind of terrorism
had completely overturned the jury system
in Ireland. The idea that the National
league in any way whatsoever resembled
trades unions Mr.. Balfour secuted as too
absurd for serious consideration The first
idea of the league, he said, was to combine
the plumber of individuals with the destruc-
ton of the constitution. Mr.. Balfour then
stated the proposals contained in the bill, the
provisions of which hal been borrowed
from the Scotch system of giving to magis-
trates the power to examine witnesses on
oath even when no persons are charged with
crime. To meet the difficulty of obtaining
verdicts the government proposed to abolish
the jury system altogether for certain classes
of crime, the magistrate to have jurisdiction
in such cases with the maximum power of
condemning convicted criminals to six
months imprisonment. The cases coming
under the provision are conspiracy
boycotting, rioting, offenses under the White
boy act, assaulting officers of the law
forcible and unlawful possession and melting
to commit any of those offenses. Mr. Balfour
declared that the government had no inten-
ton to abridge the liberty of the press and
hoped the law Furnishing the Indictment of
offenses would be sufficient to prevent the
press from sharing the crimes Committed
The bill permits a change of venue for the
trial of gIaver offenses. Irish counsel will be
permitted to appear in English courts in these
cases. The crimes triable in England, which
are murder and other aggravated crimes
purely political. are excluded from the bill
and in all cases the provisions of the bill are
to be applied to proclaimed districts only.
The proclamation of any association must be
submitted to Parliament within seven DAYS
after issuance, and if Parliament fails to ap-
prove it the proclamation will be abandoned
Concluding, Mr.. Balfour said the operation
of the bill will not be limited to any fixed
time. The bill was framed in the cause of
liberty and he asked the House to lose no
time to relieve Ireland from the yoke under
which she is grooming.
Mr.. Dillon said he did not believe the pao-
pie of England would sanction such meas
ure and declared the people of Ireland would
be slaves indeed if they submitted to it. AS
for himself, he would willingly leave a
country in which no Irishman could live
unless he lived as slave, if the people
were willing he would prouly lead them to
battle for their liberty and rights. Such a
drive the people of ireland hack to the
horrors they had formerly experienced Mr..
Balfour, he said, had proved nothing
but his ignorance of Ireland and
her people and the sooner he resigned his
Office the better for Ireland. The government
had offered Ireland the prospect of favora-
BILE land purchase bill, but let it pass a bill
enforcing coercion and neither this nor any
other Irish measure would live to be accepted
by an English Parliament.
A conference of Liberal Unionists will take
place on Thursday for the purpose of consid-
ering the governments coercion bill. The
indications are very strong that the govern
ment will have majority in a division on
the bill.
The Parnellites turn up their noses at the
threats of Mr.. w. Fl. Smith that Parliament
will sit during the Easter recess and declare
that they are ready to meet the government
upon question of physical endurance in
any other way. Whenever or how long Par
lament may sit it matters not to them. They
will be present and in full strength.
Lord Harrington intends issuing mani
festo to his followers within q few days con-
tanning arguments from his point of view
showing the vital necessity for coercion and
expressing sentiments of most uncomprom-
Using nature.
Parnel1's View of The Bill.